Tuesday, 27 December 2016

In the final hours before the Christmas holiday weekend, U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday quietly signed the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) into law—and buried within the $619 billion military budget
(pdf) is a controversial provision that establishes a national
anti-propaganda center that critics warn could be dangerous for press
freedoms.
The Countering Disinformation and Propaganda Act, introduced
by Republican Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio, establishes the Global
Engagement Center under the State Department which coordinates efforts
to “recognize, understand, expose, and counter foreign state and
non-state propaganda and disinformation efforts aimed at undermining
United Sates national security interests.”